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Positive Youth Development Newsletter |
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We are absolutely delighted to extend a heartfelt welcome to you in this inaugural edition of our newsletter!
As the snow begins to blanket our surroundings and the holidays draw near, we hope you’re finding moments to rest, reflect, and connect with loved ones. This is also a wonderful time to spend with the young people in our lives, celebrating their energy, creativity, and dreams for the future.
This month, we’re diving into stories that uplift youth voices, highlight impactful community initiatives, and showcase the incredible difference we can make when we champion youth-driven change. Alongside these stories, we’re excited to share fresh resources designed to engage young people meaningfully and inspire their leadership as the seasons shift.
Together, let’s continue stepping into new chapters with renewed energy, strengthening our commitment to expanding opportunities for young leaders.
Wishing you warmth, connection, and inspiration this holiday season.
If there's any way we can support you, please feel free to reach out. Here is the link to the calendar of the PYD Specialist at CDHS. We are excited to head into the new school year with you!
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 On Friday, October 25, at the historic Pioneers Museum in Colorado Springs, youth, advocates, and community leaders gathered to celebrate the transformative power of Positive Youth Development (PYD) in Colorado. The event was an inspiring reminder of the resilience and strength of young people, particularly those with foster care experience, who have become powerful advocates for change. This event, part of the larger national movement of Foster Youth Voice Month, surrounds youth empowerment and advocacy, which has roots going back several years and continues to grow each year.
To read more follow this link to the full article.
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Sustainability
The Community Prevention and Early Intervention (CPEI) Team at CDPHE is excited to announce a mini-grant funding opportunity for community-based organizations engaged in substance use primary prevention efforts and the promotion of healthy behaviors and positive choices. The purpose of the Community Prevention and Early Intervention (CPEI) Mini-Grant Program is to distribute between 10 and 15 one-time awards between $7,000 and $10,000 to community-based organizations engaged in substance use primary prevention efforts to help with capacity-building efforts. For the purposes of this program, primary prevention is defined as interventions that aim to prevent physical, mental, and behavioral health problems within communities before they occur. All projects will need to be completed by June 30, 2025.
The CPEI Mini-Grant Program will fund evidence-based, community-driven, short-term projects that help communities build their capacity to work towards one or more of the outcomes below:
- Preventing and reducing the use of alcohol, cannabis, prescription drugs, and other drugs (tobacco excluded);
- Changing community policies and norms regarding alcohol, cannabis, prescription drugs, and other drug use (tobacco excluded);
- Addressing population-based needs regarding alcohol, cannabis, prescription drugs, and other drug use (tobacco excluded);
- Addressing health inequities related to substance use in local communities;
- Increasing protective factors, such as community/school/peer connectedness, connection to a trusted adult, creating safe spaces, positive youth development, and opportunities for prosocial involvement, that relate to multiple dimensions of community health.
Applicants must select one of the following strategies for projects below.
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Language Justice Projects can include hosting language justice-related trainings, assisting staff and community members in becoming certified interpreters, translating prevention messaging into different languages, and purchasing equipment that increases language accessibility.
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Community Assessment and Strategic Planning Activities such as conducting environmental scans, readiness assessments, or facilitated strategic planning sessions.
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Community Engagement Activities such as listening sessions, youth engagement strategies, or community workshops.
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Capacity Building to Implement Evidence-Based Programs, Policies, and Strategies. This includes conducting a needs assessment to select a program based on the risk and protective factors of the community, sending staff to training on evidence-based programs, and purchasing an evidence-based curriculum from a list of pre-approved evidence-based programs. For more resources on evidence-based programs, policies, and strategies, please see this menu of systems change strategies
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Capacity Building to Engage Youth: such as providing positive youth development training, trusted adult training, or conducting community-wide or organization-based youth engagement readiness assessments.
Applications must be submitted by 12/18. To view the complete funding announcement, please refer to this website. If you currently receive CPEI funding, you are eligible to apply. However, priority points will be awarded to organizations who do not currently receive CPEI funding.
Equity in Arts Learning for Colorado Youth (EAL) seeks to increase access to arts education for historically marginalized youth. Grants of $10,000-$25,000 are available to support projects that bring professional artists and culture bearers into educational settings to lead programming with youth ages 4-21. Projects supported by EAL will exemplify the value of arts education, encouraging ongoing community support. Learn more.
More State Funding Opportunities
We are always on the lookout for new opportunities to ensure the sustainability of our programs and initiatives. If you're searching for funding opportunities, here is a great resource that highlights numerous grants available within the state. Explore the various options and find the support you need to drive your projects forward. Stay informed and make the most of these valuable resources to sustain and grow your impact.
https://dlg.colorado.gov/funding-opportunities
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Upcoming Trainings
 We are thrilled to announce that we have a variety of training sessions now available for everyone. Here are the current offerings:
 Weekend Opportunity ‼️‼️
Saturday PYD 101 training
Positive youth development is a strengths-based view of adolescence. This approach focuses on helping youth acquire the knowledge and skills they need to become healthy and productive adults.
- Positive youth development guides communities and organizations in how they organize services, opportunities and support to engage youth in reaching their full potential.
- Positive youth development incorporates the development of skills, opportunities and authentic relationships into programs, practices and policies
📅 Date and 🕒 Time: Dec 7, 2024 9:00 AM
📍 Location: Virtual
Register Here: https://forms.gle/NjBAdoC11oAkeKio6
Community 2024 PYD Training Schedule
Trainers of Positive Youth Development
Professional development is crucial for our PYD trainers, ensuring that we stay engaged with the latest nuances and remain informed. It is a yearly requirement to participate in professional development activities to maintain the highest standards in our training programs. If you took the training a couple of years ago and are looking to refresh your knowledge or re-engage with PYD, we encourage you to take advantage of these opportunities. Feel free to use my link for the PYD Specialist to check in, seek support, or explore further engagement options. Let's continue to grow and excel together!
 In the spirit of continuous learning and personal growth, I wanted to extend an invitation to free online training on Reproductive Justice. Having personally taken this course, it was incredibly impactful, shedding light on the vital concept of intersectionality and its relevance to our work with young people.
“ advancing the cause of racial justice is core to high-quality sex education and we want to remove barriers to educators seeking to improve their understanding and skills by creating these e-learning modules free of charge.”
Follow the link: https://www.advocatesforyouth.org/racial-justice-in-sex-education/
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Social Justice Approaches to Youth Engagement (SJYE)
Social justice youth development is focused on creating equitable opportunities for all youth and building awareness of how systems of power can oppress particular young groups. Social justice for youth engagement involves the use of intentional anti-oppressive practices for young people, as well as providing knowledge and skill-building as they negotiate and disrupt the misuses of power in their lives. FREE to participants in Region VIII (CO, UT, WY, MT, ND, SD).
https://catalog.rmphtc.org/product?catalog=SJYE-ct
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Trauma Informed Youth Engagement Toolkit
In this toolkit, Dr. Amber McDonald, PhD, LCSW provides an overview of trauma and trauma-informed practice. Strategies, timelines, case studies, advice, and additional resources are provided to guide you through the initial development of trauma-informed processes within your work with youth (and can be applied to all partnerships). Dr. McDonald assembled and recorded this information to provide additional information to the folks participating in our Social Justice Approach to Youth Engagement course.
https://catalog.rmphtc.org/product?catalog=TIYE-as
Seeking Your Valuable Feedback – Your Input Matters!
As we strive to continuously enhance our training programs, your insights are invaluable. Could you please take a moment to fill out the feedback form linked below? Your feedback will play a crucial role in shaping the future of our training initiatives.
https://forms.gle/foqpKYZHz7spzA1o9
Your time and thoughtful responses are highly appreciated. Thank you for being a vital part of our training community.
Are you passionate about Positive Youth Development (PYD)? Do you want to empower young people in your community? We have an exciting opportunity for you!
We are thrilled to announce that we are offering PYD training sessions for communities with groups of 20 or more! This is a fantastic chance to bring valuable skills and knowledge to your local area, helping to foster growth, resilience, and success among youth.
Why host a PYD training?
- Empower Your Community: Equip young people with the tools they need to thrive.
- Expert Guidance: Learn from experienced trainers who are passionate about PYD.
- Engaging and Interactive: Our training sessions are dynamic, fun, and tailored to your community's needs.
- Build Connections: Strengthen bonds within your community through shared learning and collaboration.
Don't miss out on this unique opportunity to make a lasting impact! If you have a group of 20 or more and are interested in hosting a training session, we want to hear from you!
Contact us today to learn more and schedule your training. Let’s work together to inspire and empower the next generation! We can connect you with a trainer and go forward in working together to be empowered within our communities.
Reach out to https://forms.gle/ggHTirg1QzQBMTBW6 to get started.
Together, we can make a difference. Let’s bring the power of PYD to your community!
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